Computational fluid dynamics analysis of battery pack with cooling channel integrated with innovative thermoelectric cooling stations

Abstract

In this study, a novel liquid cooled battery thermal management system integrated with a thermoelectric assisted cooling channel has been designed. To prevent battery cells from operating at high temperatures and to ensure a uniform temperature distribution among the cells, multiple thermoelectric stations were placed at various positions along the cooling channel. The performance of four different models created with various temperature combinations, as well as a conventional model without thermoelectrics, was investigated through Computational Fluid Dynamics simulations. In the analyses, five different thermoelectric temperatures (293.15–298.15 $K$), two different mass flow rates (0.0013 and 0.0018 $kg/s$), and two different initial temperatures (298.15 and 303.15 $K$) were examined. The results demonstrated a significant improvement in the performance of the battery thermal management system with the use of the thermoelectric assisted cooling channel. It was determined that lowering the initial temperature from 303.15 $K$ to 298.15 $K$ and increasing the mass flow rate from 0.0013 $kg/s$ to 0.0018 $kg/s$ resulted in better cooling performance and more uniform distribution for the thermoelectric assisted system. Under the conditions of a 0.0013 $kg/s$ mass flow rate and an initial temperature of 303.15 $K$, the highest reduction in maximum battery temperature, compared to the non-thermoelectric design, was achieved in Model B with 9.207 $K$. Under the same conditions, the most significant reduction in maximum temperature difference was observed in Model D with 4.758 $K$. Furthermore, the Root Mean Square Spread analysis results revealed that Model B provided the best performance in terms of temperature distribution.